Yard- Poor Decisions

As a citizen of the once proud German nation I am furious with the actions of the Weimar government. They have destroyed this once proud nation through their decisions regarding the Great War, the land they have lost, and how they handled the Post-War economy of Germany. If they Weimar Republic does not make changes soon all hope for Germany will be lost.

Firstly, I completely disagree with the decision to pull out of the Great War. In war you are going to lose some battles, but we were still in enemy territory. It wasn't as if they were pressing on our capitals steps. Not only were we still winning the war but Russia had also pulled out of the war. This was going to allow us to focus all of our attention on one front. The German army was ready for victory. We had been fighting this war for four years! The sacrifices that our troops had made fighting for their country and the Weimar Government threw that all away. This is unacceptable! They only had control of the country for two day before signing theTreaty of Versailles which then allowed the allies to forced us into giving in to the harsh conditions. Because of the poor decisions not only were we forced to lose a war that we were winning, but we had to accept the terms of this treaty. These terms would include paying for all war debt, taking full responsibility, and losing valuable land. I just don't understand how one government can turn a once strong nation in to this weakened country so fast. Germany was once seen as being a super power but now our military has been weakened significantly, we have lost important land, and thousands of our people have died.

Which brings me to my next point. Germany has lost valuable land since the German government has taken control. Due to the terms in the Treaty of Versailles and the outcome of the Great war we have lost all of our pre-war territories. This is an outrage. All of the work that our predecessors had worked for has been erased due to the Weimar's irresponsible actions. But it was just new land they lost. They gave away our valuable land that has been in German control for years!! This land was used to create new countries and if that wasn't bad enough, they also allowed the allies to divided Germany land in to individual nations. This is a devastating blow because it hurts Germany both economically and socially. People that were once citizens of Germany are now under a new country and Germany is responsible to pay back all war debt. But how is this possible when we are giving away our valuable land.

This brings me to my final point, the Post-War economy of Germany. This goes back to the Weimar Republic pulling Germany out of the war and signing the Treaty of Versailles. When the Germany was forced to take full responsibility and pay for all war debt it severely hurt the Germany economy. This would total around 33 billion dollars in American currency. How in the world do the allies expect us to be able to cover this. Had the Weimar not backed us out of the war this would have never happened. But if being in this large of debt wasn't bad enough our industrial businesses were failing because the men needed to run them were either wounded or killed in war. This is hurting the economy because production decreased and many factories went out of business. The agricultural economy is suffering as well. The men that were wounded or killed in the war were no longer around to tend to the farms. And for the ones that are producing goods, they are unable to sell them. This is because of the mass inflation that is occurring because of another mistake by our Weimar government. To make up for the debt they figured they would print more money, but what good is money that has nothing to support it. NOTHING! Because of this stupid mistake our money is worth almost as much as a sheet of paper. With our currency nearly valueless it will be almost impossible to have a functioning nation.

Something must be done soon. I am a proud German and I can not bare to see my nation collapsing. I am in favor of any opposition group that can promise me to help Germany rise up and be the great power it once was. I do not care what government they will attempt to set up as long as Germany become powerful once again. The Weimar Republic either needs to change and make corrections fast, or an overthrew should be in the near future. I am a proud citizen and i refuse to stand to the side and watch this devastation take place any . The "November Criminals" should be no more.

Egan- Letter of Support

To whom it may concern:

Our lives as Germans in the present is not exactly what we hoped for in the past, but who really expects it to be. Coming out of a war as big as WWI is naturally going to be a disaster. The problem is that we didn’t think it would be this bad. The Treaty of Versailles has left us all devastated with no way to get out of this situation. The Weimar government is doing their hardest to work in our best interest. I am ashamed of the citizens who speak out against the Weimar government and say that they are not trying to help us. What do you expect them to do with the circumstances they are in!!!

The Weimar government is inheriting all of these problems and none of them have an easy answer (notes). We all know and are feeling the affects of the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty is tearing Germany apart by its limbs. We have to pay back 33 billion dollars. Where are we supposed to be getting this money? The Weimar government does not know the answer to this either. They have to pay the debt back somehow and that means we all have to make sacrifices. I do not have money and the resources as so low but I guess the money usually spent on the simple things we need is being used to help with the war debt. Right now they cannot get help from other countries. We are an international pariah (notes). The other countries are blaming us for everything, they do not want to be associated with us. Im sure that we will get help from them later on but right now we will just have to suffer.

We are all having trouble getting our hands on money, and it does not help that when the soldiers got home from the war there were no jobs available (notes). Unemployment is at an all time high right now. The economy is devastated from the war, so of course there will be no jobs. The economy is so low and products are not being produced, so there is no need to have workers. When my husband got back from the war his job had been cut, there was no way that his employer could afford to have him working. My husband was in a better position than my son though, little Jimmy did not even come back from the war. I think I speak for everyone in Germany when I say that we were all affected by the war in one way or the other. Also, what did they expect the soldiers and their families to do when they tried to go home and the land was no longer in Germany. This did not happen to me but I am guessing that they had to move all of their belongings.

Yeah it is easy to blame the Weimar government for everything that is going on but they are in a very tight situation that is not easy to get out of. They are at risk of making our lives worse with every move that they make. Thats alot of pressure. You can argue that they could not even inforce their own authority or put down a challenge to their authority. But you must remember that one of the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles is that we cannot have an army larger than like 100,000 people. That is not big enough for a country of our size! With the Weimar government being just recently in power they are kind of new at this. I do not think that the Weimar government can be put responsible for this, ok they are not perfect but give them a break. It easy to put the blame on them but they did get like 76% of our votes so they must be doing something right.

Mckeown-You Idiots!!

Dear Friedrich Ebert,
What have you and your government done to our country. We were a proud nation but then you went and pulled us out of the war when we were still in it! (Notes) Then, because you pulled us out, we never got a chance to win. Why did you accept that dang treaty? We were fine but then you just rolled over to those American dogs. Because of that, we lost our land, our countrymen, our money, and our happiness.(Notes) Then you let those dang Frenchies and Belgian stupid heads take over our Ruhr.(Source 1) Maybe Hitler is right. I mean, if you cant even stop those Spartacists from marching into the capital, without help from the Friekorp, how can you protect us from other countries. Also, I don't want a weak government, I mean you can't even make money right. Because, you and your government signed all our money away, you got us into debt. Then, to get out of debt, you printed more money.(Source 1) Now, I know your new to this whole running of the government thing but printing more money isn't the solution. Now where in a crisis. I mean before all this stuff happened an ounce of gold was equal to around 20 marks. Now its equal to up in the trillions.(Notes) This is all your fault. If you hadnt signed that treaty or just not printed all this money, we would have been ok. Maybe not good but we would have survived. Now because of what you have done, we have people like this crazy Hitler guy, trying to stir up trouble with things like his "Beer Hall Pusch".(Source 1 and Notes) Nobody wants to listen to him rant about everything. Now you seem like a nice guy but this is ALL YOUR FAULT!

Alen- A Disgrace to a Thriving Country (Now Not Thriving)

The Weimar Government is a disgrace to Germany!! We have worked so hard to build up a beautiful country; my sons have died fighting for their motherland, and the Weimar Government has torn that all to shreds!! They have let a prestige country crumble to the ground because they could not realize what they were doing to their people, economy, and most of all their country. We were a powerful nation, winning a great war, before they had to go and interrupt our winnings.
First of all, why did they have to sign the Treaty of Versailles?? We were full-out winning the war and they stopped us, making us the losers. Signing the war guilt clause?? Seriously?? I mean, our boys fought just as hard as any of those fighting, if not more so, and they are the ones that get punished?? They are the ones that get the blame put on them?? That is outrageous!! We, as Germans, did nothing wrong, so why is the world punishing us?? Because those stupid Weimar government officials decided to not finish what we had started. So now Germany is the weak losers of this Great War for no reason. The Weimar Government is allowing those Allies to come in and take control of our country. They are allowing the Allies to dictate our military size, and most of all full debt of the war!! The German people have to pay repercussions for those idiots getting themselves into a battle messing with Germany. Plus, the Weimar government is allowing the Allied blockade to continue (source 1). This is killing a quarter of a million German citizens and crippling our economy more (source 1). These November Criminals (source 1) should be taken out of office!! Two days in office and already they are killing Germany.
Along with the economic issues and national pride issues they have put us through, the Weimar government has lost major land masses to the Treaty of Versailles. Some of Germany’s best land has been lost thanks to the Weimar government. Forty-eight percent of our iron production has been lost (Belk notes)!! Seriously, what are we supposed to pay back our war debt with?? And sixteen percent of our coal production?? Lost again, because the Weimar government decided to make a hasty decision to sign Germany out of a winning effort in the war two days into office. They did not even have a chance to know what was going on yet!! How could this have been a good decision for Germany?? It was not what the people wanted, as in Russia. They were not fulfilling our wants, they were selfishly fulfilling theirs!! They did not want to deal with leading a war, so they lost our lands. Thirteen percent of our economy, gone. All of our pre-war colonies, gone. And the government does nothing to help the German people pay the money back. How they expect us to pay it back without having the resources from our lost land escapes me. I will never understand.
Lastly, what has the Weimar government done since they signed the Treaty of Versailles to help us, their people, out?? I’ll tell you; nothing. They sadly attempted to print more money (Belk notes) to try and have more in the system to pay back. However, all this did was to cause inflation where we can now not even afford to buy the bare necessities. So, still, the German people are dying; and still because of the Weimar government. They can not even put down the revolts happening around Germany; they had to use the help of the Freidkorps (Belk Notes). This shows a weakness in our government yet again. And we are supposed to believe in and support this government?? I think not!! Plus, they continue to allow the Allies to harass us. We gave up because of them, and the Allies still occupy areas around us (source 1). The government does nothing about it. Again the question remains, how are we supposed to pay back our war debts if we have no economy to do so.
This government, I will never have faith in. All they have done is hurt Germany and kill off her people. I will not stand to watch as our sons’ deaths to defend the motherland go in vain. I hate what the Weimar government has turned Germany into; a country that will bow down and stupidly accept harsh and unfair terms she does not need to accept. Before the Weimar government came in and ruined Germany and her people, Germany was a strong nation, well capable of defending herself and winning a war. The Weimar government has ruined all that and I am ashamed to call them my government!!

Meine Beanstandungen (I do have a tendency to push it.)

As a German citizen, I am conflicted. I’m not sure what to make of these new Weimar folks. One the one hand, I am not happy about the way they dealt with the war. We were so close! And yet they decided to pull us out at the last moment. I think if we had stuck with it, we could have pushed through and been successful. But the Weimar folks decided to pull us out to soon and disgrace our dear Germany. And not to mention the hit to the motherland’s economy and pride. We’ve lost our best land (my uncle that lives in Saarland isn’t even a German citizen anymore! That land had been in the family for generations) and as such, have lost much of our livelihood. How are we supposed to buy food or for our families pay for war debts if we have no land to work? And the money we do have is not sufficient in today’s economy. The price of bread these days! With the rate of inflation, what used to buy me a week of food now can barely buy a meal. And each time I go to the store, everything costs more. My children are going to starve. And on top of that, those countries we were fighting, they want us to pay them back for everything, like it was our fault. Was that part of the treaty those Weimar people signed to jerk us out of the war? That us poor, hard-working Germans are to blame? I see not how this is our fault; they declared war on us. We’ve lost land, we’ve lost money already in the fight, and we’ve lost so many of our sons that would have worked and produced and built up the economy. Even so, we now bear not only the burden of paying off exorbitant sums, but also the shame of being called violent, belligerent brutes. What’s more, now we’re asking our enemies, the people that were killing us not a year ago, to help us. The shame! We were just trying to uphold the honor of our beloved Germany and protect our identity. Now look at us, starved, floundering, and begging for charity.
Despite all that has resulted from the accursed Versaille treaty, though, I haven’t completely lost faith in the Weimar Republic. Sure, they are largely responsible for the wasted lives, the money that now must be collected, our starving children, our crumbling economy, ect. But they are not the worst thing that could happen to us. I’ve heard talk of these other groups, called the Spartacists or some malarkey like that. They are calling for violent uprisings to the end of communism. This, frankly, scares the crap out of me. The economy will get better; it just takes time. But if we let some radical left-wing party take control, who knows what kind of nightmare we will be stuck in and how long it could last? No, I’d rather tighten my belt for now and keep my right to vote. If this situation continues, at least I can vote out these folks. If the Spartacist seize power, you think we could say a word against them? I think not. I don’t like our current situation, no, not one bit. But things are going to get better. I have faith those Weimars are going to pull it together, and so are the German people.

Sanford- Wiemar, what have you wrought?

Okay, first off, this is the writing of a German citizen, but I'm sure to have some bias from my knowledge from class, so here's a best attempt.

What is the Weimar doing?! what has happened to the Fatherland? These criminal, in November...these November Criminals!... have destroyed our once beautiful reich, and now our country is at the whim of the Allies. Why would the Weimar sign the Treaty of Versailles? We are not the guilty ones for the beginning of the war! We were forced by the threat made by France's treaty with those filthy Russians (Belk)! And now we must pay billions of marks to those criminals? Our proud military must be slashed, down to a mere 100,000 soldeirs as well? This is madness! And now our empire has been taken from us, and devied up into these puny countries, and our standing in the world gets shredded with every acre of land that we lose. Friedrich should never have agreed to such a treaty, and he has condemned his people to suffer by doing so. He had not yet lost the war, and yet he makes us quit(Belk)? Has he no faith in his brave soldiers? We could have valiantly fought, and won this war! Russia had just dropped even! Weimar government could not have handled this war any worse. I am all for democracy, but I do not want to be led by the weak.

And now with the economy in the drain, our country has even more problems. We lost all our workers (Belk Notes) thanks to war deaths and injuries. And our most productive stakes of land have been taken from us thanks to this "treaty" (Belk). Our government has left us no way recover our capital. And the inflation we suffer from the over use of currency (Belk) has cut our marks to a third of their old value! We can't get people to trade with us when our money is worth the same as a pile of, well you know, times are bad. It's not just that we have to pay back these war reparations, but on top of that, we're left with no way to raise the money to do so. Thanks to our Wiemar gaovernment, this treaty is going to destroy our economy, and our once proud nation. Not to mention our infrastructure will have to change with how focused we were on the war for the past few years, which will make our current economy that much more perilous.

Thanks to Wiemar government, and their signing of the treaty of Versailles, we have lost all our most precious lands (Belk). Alsaise-Lorraine, which we fought the French so determinedly for (Belk), has now been handed back, what of the soldiers that died in that war? Does their sacrifice mean nothing to the Reich? And the land we won from Russia has been turned into the useless countries, like Poland and Czechoslovakia. Our empire has been minimized, even our African territories have been taken (Belk). We must struggle now to stay on the map, when before the nation had begun to spread through Europe. The Wiemar has sent our troops, or what we have left of them at least, to the borders to keep us from shrinking anymore. But what of the capital? Who will protect the government? With such turmoil from the loss of this war, it does not seem wise to leave the leader unprotected.

Although our democracy is new, this is too important of a matter for excuses to be allowed. The government will either make better decisions, or someone stronger will take their place.

Araam Borhanian: Weimar Government is brand new, go easy!

The Weimar government is doing exactly what they ought to do. Even though I do have to say, they could be much better, I'm sure that these problems will go away as we continue to live under the Weimar government.

First of all, I am extremely happy they pulled out of the war within the second day they were put in power. Some of us citizens wanted Germany to stay in the war. After all, we were winning. However, they must remember that we faced the chance of an invasion from the Allies! What would that have done to our country? We were already starving, with the blockade from Great Britain continuing to prevent us from getting the food we desperately needed (Belk Notes). We needed to end the starvation, and start getting out of this mess! The only way was to get out of the war, and start going back to what was normal.

I think that we can all say, as proud Germans, that we were more than upset when we found out that WE were not only forced to admit to causing the war, but also had to give up land.(Source 1) So much, in fact, that we ended up losing 13 percent of the land we had, and all of the colonies! (Belk Notes) However, this can not be blamed on the Weimar Government. We citizens have to realize that even though Germany is great, we would have to meet the requirements of the Treaty of Versailles, for our opponent is formidable. Maybe one day we will be forgiven, or we will get rid of it entirely. Who knows.

I was pretty disappointed with the huge mistake the Weimar government made in terms of dealing with the economy. Not only did they end up producing bills that we were forced to the point of inflation, but we also had to deal with all the job losses. The valuable land taken through the Treaty of Versailles also took away some of us, and therefore some of our jobs. Therefore, we were limited in what we could do. (Belk Notes) The Weimar government still can't be blamed for this. I'm sure they'll get rid of the inflation we're experiencing, and will help create jobs. That is their job after all, and they are brand new.

Overall, the government is really rough right now, but they will get better over time.

On Whining

My friends, I write to you today because of an upsetting trend I have been seeing lately. Riots in the streets, anger, hatred, finger-pointing and name-calling…never did I believe that Germany would stoop so low. Never did I believe that the proud Germans I call my friends, my family, and my countrymen, NEVER did I believe they would resort to such petty bickering! The Weimar government is making the best of a nearly impossible situation. The Great War…so many are upset about us “losing” the war, but do they not see how much worse it would have been? We could not stop them from wresting our holdings in France and Belgium from our grasp, what would have stopped them from taking everything else we hold dear? The government should be praised for their foresight and willing to do the unpopular thing to protect those they serve. Instead, they are attacked on all sides, to the point of an uprising! What nonsense! And as for the land that was lost...truly it was a small price to pay for our freedom! Had we disagreed we would have been enslaved by others in Europe, those who wished to see us fight back so that they could utterly destroy us. Land has been lost, but it is simply land. Land can be gained back at an opportune time, let us wait for others to trust us, perhaps, then wrest it back. We should focus on the land we do have, though I may covet my neighbor’s rich orchard it will do little to fill my own belly! Instead, I should look to my fields and see what may be done there. So too should Germany do. Do not look to the fields of France, or any of the new nations founded. Instead look to our own, while plotting of how to take the other fields. We will find an opportunity to strike eventually, but for now patience is key! Another major issue, the Americans. For one who fought so hard against us, they certainly are willing to help us. We should use this to our advantage. Let us thrust aside our foolish pride, pride that I needn’t remind you, my fellow citizens, that got us in this mess in the first place! No, let us thrust it aside and accept their aid with open arms, and use it so that we may improve our lands, pay off our debt, and begin to rebuild. Once the time is ripe, then we can strike again, and the Americans seem content to help us in this endeavor, wittingly or not! Long live Germany!

- Fred "Rich" E.

Taylor- A Angry German Citizen

The German government is completely out of hand. I have been a citizen for 60 years and this is the worst yet!!!! First and foremost I absolutely hate the Weimar Republic!!!! They pulled us out of the war when we were winning. We might not have been home before the leaves fall down , but were in good standing in the war. The Weimar Republic just had to interupt things and sign an armistice within two todays of reigning in power! I just want to scream because we are Germany a strong and leading country, not losers who pull out of war!!! Thats exactly why they are referred to as the "November Criminals"! The Weimar Republic now leaves Germany in a $33 billion war debt, attached to signing a war-guilt clause, and political instability.

The war debt ,dont even get me started..... Do you know they created more money to pay for the war when we already lacked funds. Now our money is worthless !!! And do you think they care??? Definately not!!! They just continue to print money, until it came to them that they were causing inflation. For example I went to the store yesterday to buy some cheese and bread to make my favorite dinner. Well the only problem with that is it would cost me $600,000,000 of my currency!!! How wasI going to pay for that ??? Im so upset now due to inflation I can no longer buy my favorite things , it not only effecting our economy it is limiting my freedom!!!!

The funniest thing to me is the war guilt clause lol :) Its really funny......(Not) We now have to say that Germany was the cause of WWI !!! How riduculous is that ??? Germany a dominant country is now a failure , and emenies with everyone. And to add on that problem dealing with a freakin' government that could careless about Germany. So now we are the guilty ones, just because the Weimar Republic , who I prefer to call the "dummy republic" pulled us out of WWI. We the people Germany dont like feeling guilty, and we could end this if we could just remove this retarded government!

To conclude the one thing I hate is what I see coming about in Germany communism, due our countries political instabilty !!! We are going to become Communist, because we have so many uprising. And you would not believe who they call on for help to calm the people down !!! Just let me say its the same people who I believe will change Germany to a communist nation. They just dont see it!!! The Weimar Republic is a failure !!!! I absolutely hate their motives . They pulling Germany down , I just wish they would flee like Lenin no one would miss them!!!! I am to the point now I dont care if we become Communist , because anything is better than this . And you know just as I saying I dont care other people are to , and that is exactly how the Communist government will move in . If I dont live to say anything else I will say this, "bye Dummy republic and Hello Communism!!!!"

Boyle; Beneficial

Having taken care of small children, I can understand the Weimar Government's issues. As far as ending the war goes, it's all good, in my opinion. I mean, yeah. We could have taken this all the way. It's understandable that the neighbors are ripping apart the November Criminals (BN), but it's better than the alternative. We've already seen two point four million deaths (BN). There is no reason to add to that. Our nationalism, at this point, is clouding the bigger picture. And anyway, they'd only been in power a few days (BN)! I don't see any mothers expecting their children to come out of the womb break dancing. How can we expect this baby government to understand how important this war is to our country?

Plus, can we all please be quiet about the land cost and reparations? We signed a war guilt clause (BN). This happens when you cannonball into a world war. Otherwise, the other countries would have invaded, and it seems as though this would hurt a bit more than our country's pride (BN). We need to take our victories where we can, rather than moaning about all the lost land (BN). However, the money we have to make up is terrifying. And, the way they went about that is where I start to gain a bit of anger.

For the most part, they've done an okay job. The government has noted that people were dying. TOO many people. So, we're out of that. They've understood the possibility of invasion, and signed both the Treaty of Versailles and the War Guilt Clause attached (BN) to relieve us of that pressure. Even allowing the other countries to take the land would be all right, except now we've lost a lot of our best land. Forty-eight percent of our iron production is gone(BN). Ditto to sixteen percent of the coal production (BN). (I did the math in my head, in case you were wondering. Don't worry, it's right.) This isn't really the fault of the government; this is just what the other countries chose to take. Can we honestly blame them for grabbing some of the prime real estate?

Since this is the case, our economy will fall down the toilet as it is. But then, the government had the ingenious idea of printing more money to pay off reparations (BN). The only problem is, more money will bring the value of our currency down (BN).

Guess how much my bread cost?

I don't know either. I couldn't buy any.

But hey, who knew? It seemed like a pretty logical idea, ignoring the gold standard, which is basically a measure of how much currency it takes to buy an ounce of gold (BN). It wasn't a smart move, and I'm pretty sure they understand that, NOW. It doesn't make things better, but young governments are prone to mistakes. It's how we react from here that will either make or break the Weimar system. We'll see.

But, just for the record. If a person has a choice between poking your left eye or poking your right eye--no third choice--it only seems logical that, no matter what, one of the two eyes is going to hurt.
Just saying.


*BN = Belk Notes

NEIN Wiemar

As a German citizen I can’t believe that I would see the day that I would be ashamed of everything Germany stood for. My disbelief is becoming my reality, which unbearable to accept. The Wiemar government does not support their actions with sense. I am living the life of poverty, when before the Treaty of Versailles and the War guilt Clause I would be seen as a fairly wealthy person. The Wiemar republic has brought upon shame to Germany. Why did we admit to defeat, we were going on strong?? It does not make any sense; I have lost all faith in my government. When your team runs into a little setback, you don’t quit and accept the consequences, you encourage the team to pump it up, and never give up. What kind of country are you running? Besides accepting defeat, we, as the Germans, were forced to admit to the Treaty of Versailles also. I had to watch as Germany lost its most profitable land. I had to watch our German army cut down to a merely 100,000 soldiers. I had to watch as, slowly but surely, every German became helpless to the nation’s debt. I have had enough of this. I can not even buy by necessities without paying a fortune. Our dollar is worthless; the inflation is killing every single German. When the genius Wiemar republic decided to imprint more money to pay off the reparations of the war, the worth of the dollar had decreased to an amount that one ounce of gold would cost somewhere in the trillions, yes I said TRILLIONS. This is crazy, how are we supposed to live in a situation like this. More importantly, how am I supposed to keep trust in a government that doesn’t appeal me at all, one that I am ashamed of?
I can not even find a job, much less a decent one. Because of this crazy inflation and the around 33 billion dollar debt, unemployment has skyrocketed. Unemployment rates were so high because of decline of industry during this time, no one could afford business making, and also with industry it required to ask for loans and such, which was nearly impossible post-war in Germany. Wiemar republic, you have failed to do your job with the establishment of Democracy. If this government was a true or even semi-democracy, the people would decide what to do with the war, and not just you. How am I supposed to live under these disastrous conditions? How will I support my family if the cost of milk is twice the cost of salary? It is hard to make a decision such as this, but consultation with the country is truly important in times such as these I don’t believe that a Democracy is what our country needs right now, we need someone who will listen to us, who will act upon those things that will help us, the Germans.
Those plans that were supposedly helping Germany with the war reparations didn’t really do what they were intended to do. The Dawes Plan was a plan aimed for Germany to pay the reparations in installments so Germany would not have to deal with it all at once. The Dawes Plan resulted as unsuccessful because many of the angry Germans refused to occupy the growing areas of the coal and steel industries therefore causing more strain to the German economy and hyperinflation. Because the Dawes plan was ineffective, the Young Plan was then instated. The Young Plan stated that it would reduce Germany’s national debt and wouldn’t enforce any immediate payments. But neither plan went without consequence, Like the Dawes Plan as it resulted in hyperinflation, the Young Plan caused the Wall Street Crash in the United States effecting America’s economy, while benefiting Our (Germany) economy.
I am very unhappy with the Wiemar republic’s decisions. I feel that they were negligent to our needs and how it would affect the people of Germany. The inflation, unemployment, and the defeat of Germany have shamed me as a German citizen

Snider- Weimar Government was Shameful

As a German citizen, I believe that the performance of the Weimar Government was shameful. At first, I had trust in the Weimar Government but all of their actions have led me to think otherwise. For example, I wish that the Weimar Government had dealt with World War One differently in the fact that they should not have given up in the war and settled for a peace settlement. The Weimar Government probably thought that imposing a peace settlement would be the best for us. When in reality, it created more problems for us all. The problems with the Treaty of Versailles are many. For example, it reduced the army to 100,000; we accumulated $33 billion in war reparations; it caused a war-clause guilt; and we also had to give up some of our best land. This decision made by the Weimar Government has made our country suffer many problems. If they had never agreed to end the war, we would have never had to face many of these problems that we have come across. The Weimar Government should have never settled for a peace settlement and should have let our country continue to fight. Maybe these problems we have faced could have been inevitable, but I think that signing this treaty made the problems a lot worse than they should have been. I also think that the Weimar Government should have acted differently about the land after World War One. Once they signed the Treaty of Versailles, Germany had to give up much of its best land. This affected many of us. When our land was taken from us, some of us lost our jobs. The land that we had to give up could have been used for agriculture and farming. Giving our land away led to another problem. Without this land, many people found themselves unemployed. Also, since the war was over, many soldiers came home to find no job opportunities available. If the Weimar Government had never ended the war, this would have never been a problem. Nothing would have changed. The signing of the Treaty of Versailles seemed to cause a lot more problems than it helped resolve. But, if the Weimar Government had decided to stay in the war and we lost, the same problems could have occurred; however, we do not know that and never will because the Weimar Government decided to withdrawal from the war and sign the peace treaty.

Lowder- the road to hell is paved with good intentions

Dear, Weimar Government
I have to say that the newly formed Weimar government seems to have the best of intentions; but like the recently toppled provisional government in neighboring russia, thats all they are. You want peace, You want to fix the economy, and YOu want to help us with our basic needs, but wanting isnt enough, you have to actually do somthing about it, and what you do needs to actually be beneficial.
First, the war. You say you want peace, and I agree with you; however, the cost that peace has come with in the treaty of Versailles far outweighs the benefits (class notes). We have lostour fertile lands and centers of industry, we are being plunged into a huge budget deficit, and we must accept the shame of being to blame for the war, that was started by those ignorant serbs(class notes). True, we wont lose anymore soldiers to fighting, but with such a blow to the economy and with no way to overcome it how many more will we lose to hunger and disease? Also with our most productive lands gone we wont be able to overcome the damage done to our country let alone pay for that of the entire world. Why would you accept a treaty that punishes a government that is no longer in power?
Secondly, you say you want to fix the economy which sounds great, but are you really willing to do anything about it? It doesnt seem that way to me. As I've said before you've conceded our most productive areas to foreign tyrants, but along with that you are unwilling to take the measures necessary to stabilize our economy and balance our budget (1). On top of this, we are now running a trade deficit due to the war guilt clause. Because we are seen as the international "bad boy" noone will trade with us(1). We are importing far more than we are exporting and hemorraging capital all the while. So I ask, you say you want to help the economy, but have you not tied your hands behind your back by giving up on the war effort and signing the TOV? I dont see any way for these problems to be fixed as long as we abide by the rules of that treaty.
Lastly you say you want to help us with our basic needs, and i believe you. Noone with any human qualities at all could watch their countrymen starve, but once again have you not tied your own hands? With a depleted workforce, tanking economy, and civil unrest(1) how can you do anything to help the people? We support your ideals (1). Democracy and the freedom it brings would be wonderful for Germany(1),but how much longer can we support a government that lets us starve? If things arn't turned around soon revolt will be the least of your worries,because all of your people will have starved (class notes. So count this as a warning. We support you, but if you dont find a way to follow through on the promises you've made then revolution will be the only way.
A Concerned Citizen

Bryson- Weimar Government, Not Exactly My Best Friend

Guess what! I just went to try to buy bread for my family and the grocery store down the street is shut down. They had a sign out front saying they could not find enough employees to keep it open. And the one across town wants a whole dollar! for one loaf of bread. It is ridiculus how many things have changed since this Weimar Government took over and put an end to the war. And many of these changes are not making them popular in my neighborhood either. Alfons, a general in the war who lives down the street from me, is highly upset with the sudden end to the war and i cannot say i disagree. We were winning! or so we were told. Everything was going to so well at the beginning and it seemed as if this war was going to be a short and glorious one for Germany like everyone was saying. Then the Weimar Government had to come in and sign the Treaty of Versailles that has left us even worse than during the war. Look at us. We can bearly buy a loaf of bread without going across town and having to trade and arm and a left for it. by signing that treaty we lost so much.
One of the major things we lost was valuable land. During my childhood, I can still remember my dad taking me to Alsace-Lorraine and seeing all the men at work, to show me the valuable lands our country depends so much on. Now, that land has been handed back to France. We also lost more land to other neighboring countries as well as countries that were not even established yet and had therefore no right to it.
Also, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, we were blamed for the entire war. I seem to remember there being issues between Russia and Austria Hungary that started this whole thing. Germany had no beef with anyone. We just took the war as an opprotunity to expand. When the Weimar Government agreed for us to take the blame for the war, they also agreed to pay $33 billion in war reparations leaving us in huge debt. That must be why there is inflamation and loafs of bread cost a whole dollar! We have already lost valuable land, lowing our production that leads to a decrease in trade that leads to a decrease in profit for us workers and a rise in prices for things. So how could the Allies and more importantly, the Weimar governmetn expect that we would be able to pay all of this money? The Weimar government should have known the consequences of that great a debt could not be good, so why would they sign the treaty if they have the best interest of the people in mind? I'll tell you why. Because they don't!
And the worst thing of all is that there were no German representatives there when this treaty was drawn up. We had no say so in what the conditions of the treaty would be. And the Weimar government signed it! This was the first time ever that the opposing side was not present when the conditions of a treaty were agreed upon. Instead, we sat back at home and waited for them to decide our fate and to sign it no matter what in fear that we would be taken over. The Weimar government should have stood up to the Allies and told them these terms were not fair and to try to come to an agreement on the conditions. If that did not set well then i would rather have been taken over with a loaf of bread on my table than a Germany left in caos.

Albowicz-They truly tried.

--beginning of testimony—

Guten Tag! My name is Brigitte Luxemburg. You probably know my cousin, Rosa Luxemburg, one of the leaders of the Spartacists. But, I am not my cousin. I sit here in Landsberg Prison for my own reasons. My own desires were sought out, before any plan could be put into action. I had a plan, a good one at that, to destroy the Weimar forever. But, dastardly traitor Körbl Liebknecht betrayed me, instigating my arrest. Oh, you recognize that name too? His Uncle, Karl Liebknecht was also a Spartacist leader. Maybe that is where I went wrong, thinking people would not betray family. After all, with the Weimar in power, family is literally all we have.
But, testimonies are not where you want to hear my betrayal or my family. You just want to hear my reasoning, and I understand. It goes along with that whole good behavior deal. Well, here goes. Why did I do it? HA, I didn’t, yet I’m still here! Oh, you mean why did I WANT to do it? Well, basically with the Weimar, I can’t have power. After all, doesn’t it seem like that’s all anyone wants anymore? The first thing they Weimar did when power was gained was pull us out of the war.(1) This was rapid, two days in fact.(1) But, they managed to pull it off. This was very successful in the eyes of the families of soldiers, that only wanted them home. I mean, who wants to keep fighting? But, this also failed a bit because some people wanted to rally under new leadership. But, since we were out of the war successfully, and quite a clean break, my chance of military leadership was gone.
The Treaty of Versailles was not a very good status booster for the Weimar though. They completely agreed to it. We lost 13% of our 1914 territory and 12% of our population.(1) Losing the land that lives were lost for was a big upset. And think about the people that were among that portion of territory that preferred to stay under German leadership? They had to pick everything up and relocate. This was not successful on the Weimar’s part. I understand the politics behind it. I mean, with the aggression France has shown before, It honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they threatened an invasion, but I think German citizens would rise up in order to keep her land in tact. And because of the Treaty, we were forced to pay what the US said to be about 33 Million USD. But, when we lose are best industrial land, how are we expected to repay. Our industry has gone down severely and it honestly trails back to the loss of land that the Weimar idly sat by and gave up. Then, the Weimar has the bright idea to print more money. Smart move, right? Let’s just make more money so it is worth less. This way production goes down because people can’t afford to live anymore. Isn’t that the best way to pay off debts? This upset people very much, so it was definitely a failure for the Weimar government. I don’t think it sounds like we were on the road for Democracy now, after we saw how crooked the road was to be. So you see, it was for the good of the people. I just wanted a more…strict government. Why not? It has worked in the past. There is a reason we have never had democracy in Germany.(1) It doesn’t work. So, I saw how bad the German people were, and I couldn’t help but hurt. I just needed to try what I could to get them out of such horrible conditions.
But, finally the Weimar got smart, and sought help. In about 1924, the Dawes Plan was created using American help. (2) It was basically a payment plan. It set a definite fee to be paid annually, in order to cover reparations. This was definitely a bright idea. It caused a stabilization of the inflation that was continuously increasing. (2) I think seeking help was a very bold move on the Weimar’s part. But, it also showed weaknesses. A) it proved a weakness that the Weimar was not succeeding on their own. B) It asked help from a country who was just our enemy a few years ago. So, there was a lot of controversy. Adolf Hitler disagreed with it because it didn’t lower the price at all, not even with good behavior. (2) Also, he didn’t like that foreign affairs were controlled by foreign people. When the Dawes Plan failed because of the Wall Street Crash, the Young Plan was put in. Again, this was done using US help. But, this one was more ideal because it cut due amount by about seventy-five percent. (3) Also, the annual due would increase each year so it would finally end in 1988.(3) Again, this was a success for the Weimar, because they showed to be making a true effort to cover the reparations without such tactics as printing more money. (You would think they’d notice that the more they printed, the more expensive ink began to cost. Owell.) Again, Hitler criticized this plan, but I’m beginning to think he is just a moody insolent person.
So let me guess, the fact that I’m actually saying the Weimar did a good job, for the most part, is confusing you a bit right? So, why would I want the downfall? Oh, I’m just a left-winger that wants things done my way, and I want my say in it. But, that’s not to discredit the work of the Weimar. They were new and pressured, and signing the armistice was all they could think to do, to make an obvious change. And, although the Treaty of Versailles was not ideal, they made attempts to repair the damages from it, including seeking outside help. In the end, the help they found managed to decrease the reparation payments. (3) Everything isn’t perfect, but what is? If leading a country were so easy, everyone would be doing it.
But that’s about all I have to say. There is my testimony. Why I wanted to. But, I’ve been a good little Spartacist in here, so don’t I get time for good behavior?

--end testimony--

(1) Coach Belk's Notes
(2) http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERdawes.htm
(3) http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERyoung.htm

Hunter- take a look through my eyes

As I gaze at the world around me I think to myself, what has become of the land we used to love and adore? The country we used to be proud to call our own and be ready to stand up and defend it? I don’t have much energy to stand anymore from the lack of food in my belly. The birds don’t even sing for they are too hungry, as am I. I wake up every morning wishing it were all a dream, a horrible nightmare. That my belly and that of my children’s were full and that my husband was home again in my arms.

As a middle-aged single mother of two starving children, I’m not able to earn enough money nor am I given enough land to support my family. We spend our days scouring for lost or unwanted food tossed out in the streets, though there is little to find. As I no longer have a job because the government felt the need to shut down all of the factories and businesses because they were afraid of a strike (Belk notes). Was it really necessary to shut down all of them?! They already sent my husband to war so I had to take up a job to put food on the table and now he’s going to take that away too? Even if, by God’s grace, my husband was sent back to me, he wouldn’t be able to support our family because there are no longer any jobs available (Belk notes). I mean is this some sort of sick joke thought up to entertain those who are living well and fat, because I’m not laughing? I’m starving! And so is my family. Seeing as all of the factories were shut down, Russia stopped bringing in money to pay off the $66 billion reparations from World War 1 (Belk notes). How do they expect us to pay them back if you take away our jobs so we can’t make any money in the first place? Their brilliant idea to fixing this problem was printing more money which only succeeded in making the country poorer. More money doesn’t make the debt go away, it only makes the value of money diminish and causes inflation (Belk notes). My children and I had to take three wheelbarrows full of money to the store yesturday to buy one bloody gallon of milk! One gallon!

I thought the Weimer Government was supposed to be preventing this? They were supposed to be on our side! After what happened to Russia you’d think they’d be more careful of whom they placed in power. I used to respect the Weimer Government, I had faith that they were going to protect us from the evil of communism with their Social, German, and Centre parties who wanted a democracy and to give us, the people, power! (Belk notes). What a splendid idea! I was a part of that 76.2% that voted for them and believed that they would change Russia for the better (Belk notes). I was sadly mistaken. After the uprisings and rebellions began, the left-wing radicals, who wanted communism and were willing to obtain it by any means necessary, slowly began taking over. Thus the loss of our food, land, jobs, and pride. Maybe none of this would have happened if the Weimer Government had never signed that Armistice taking us out of the war in the first place. Did they even consider the effects the Treaty of Versailles would have on us? The people, the faithful citizens who live and die here everyday by the hands of our own government. What will become of Germany if this continues on? And if there is change to come, will I live to see that day?

Paul, Down with the Government!

The Weimar government is said to be a democracy giving power to the people. I don’t hear my voice being heard? Who asked me whether I wanted to take Germany out of the war? No one. The November Criminals were only in power for two days before they decided to take our great nation out of the war. Were we losing? No. We were nowhere close to losing yet. Yes maybe things could have gotten even worse, but maybe things would have looked up! France and Great Britain claimed that they would invade Germany. We have already shown the strength or our military in France. I will admit that we probably could not take both Great Britain and France but we could have held off a little longer so that we did not look like such a weak nation. The signing of the Treaty of Versailles made this nation look like it was basically diminished. The allied powers took anything and everything they wanted and the Weimar government agreed without even making a stand! And don’t even get me started on the war guilt clause! How can they blame Germany for causing the war? Yes our military built up considerably before the war but Great Britain’s navy was growing rapidly as well. The Schiefflin plan was only a plan of action so that Germany would never have to fight on two friends. It was a defensive measure not a means of attack. The Weimar government should understand this and get the point out to the allied powers. But instead the government just stepped aside and let them have all of the control.
The Treaty of Versailles basically cut up all of Germany and just spread it out all over the place. How can the Weimar government just let them do this? Germany has worked hard and built up its military in order to keep the land that it has and the government is just going to give it up without a fight? In the Franco-Prussian War we won Alsace-Loraine but now the Weimar government has given it up? Not to mention the 100% of pre war colonies that we had to give back! I do know that trying to keep all of the land would have been impossible but putting up a fight would have at least showed us the people that they tried to do what was best for our country. All around the country we have different groups of people, while most support the Weimar government many do not. The government is supposed to protect the people of its country but so far they have only shown their weaknesses. When the spartacists began to uprise and revolt against them they had to call in for help from the freikorp. What kind of government cannot only protect themselves but also its people? Also how do they expect the working class to be able to pay for the necessities with the inflation the way it is because of the reparations? Milk is now a fortune but the fortune that many people make now is useless because money is basically useless. I understand that we have never been a democratic country but how did they not know printing more money would cause inflation? I have begun to burn the money now just to stay warm because it is otherwise useless. People everywhere are just like me, trying to survive in an economy that is dwindling because of the horrible Weimar government!

McGill- Die regierung ist gut!

Ich habe keine ahnung, warum die menschen werden so gemein. Die regierung ist dabei die besten, es kann! Wir sind deutsche und wir durcheinander. Der krieg war von anfang an schlecht. Es gab keine möglichkeit hätten wir gewonnen haben, dass der krieg trotzdem. Ich bin einfach dankbar, zogen sie so schnell wie sie. Wenn unsere reparationen diese schlechte bist, denke daran, wie es gewesen wäre, wenn wir wirklich verloren. Ich liebe Deutschland so selbstverständlich ich denke, wir können alles und alles gewinnen, aber ich bin auch ein mensch so dass ich jedes mal, wenn einer unserer männer im krieg getötet wurden verletzt. Ich habe meinen Mann, mein Bruder, mein Onkel, mein Vetter, und mein Großvater. Ich bin müde und verletzt und als eine frau, die nicht kämpfen ich kann mir nur vorstellen, was die leute lust haben. Und sie können nicht gewinnen, einen krieg mit müden männern verletzen. Also in ihrem sessel und fluch der regierung zur beendigung des krieges sitzen, aber sie haben das beste in bezug auf den krieg.

Ja, vielleicht das Weimarer regierung hat nicht mit den eg-vertrag sehr gut. Ich denke, wir sollten nicht verloren haben, als viele länder. Ich als bürger nicht für den krieg stimmen also warum sollte ich die annexion von meiner heimat, weil diese angst haben? Sie hätten ein wenig mehr gekämpft. Was war das schlimmste, was zu diesem zeitpunkt passiert sein könnte? Wir hätten nicht zu unterbieten sind wieder und beruf gewesen wäre nichts anderes als unsere letzte regierung. Ich vermisse den ländern sind wir verloren. Der teil der nicht im krieg ist unfair.

Diese depression ist nur ein weiterer zyklus des lebens der okonomie. wenn wir als Deutsche aufhören zu kämpfen für einen augenblick, als wir zusammenarbeiten können, um uns wieder aufzubauen. Die welt hasst uns, aber in zehn jahren werden sie jemand anderen zu hassen. Im moment benötigen wir können aufhören zu wachsen beginnen geld und lebensmittel für einander und handelsgüter anstelle von geld, wie wir taten, wie menschen vor jahren. Unsere wirtschaft ist schrecklich, aber es wird sich bringen, sichern, jetzt müssen wir gemeinsam handeln und aufhören zu kämpfen, um einander zu helfen. Es ist nicht unsere regierung ist schuld. nichts davon ist. Sie haben die schwierigste aufgabe in diesem land und weniger kritik wird dazu beitragen, sie mit der autorität und das vertrauen zu handeln. So stoppen und starten sie beschimpfen sie ihnen zu helfen. menschen in Deutschland können wir wachsen und wieder auf den anfang der Welt mit der demokratie und einheit, das heißt, was Amerika getan hat.



I have no idea why people are being so mean. The government is doing the best it can! We are German and we messed up. The war was bad from the beginning. There was no way we would have won that war anyway. I am just thankful they pulled out as fast as they did. If our reparations are this bad think about what it would have been like after we really lost. I love Germany so of course I think we can win anything and everything but I am also a human so I hurt every time one of our men were killed in war. I lost my husband, my brother, my uncle, my cousin, and my grandfather. I am tired and hurt and as a woman who did not fight I can only imagine what the men feel like. And you cannot win a war with tired hurting men. So sit in your armchairs and curse the government for ending the war but they did what was best in regards to the war.

Yes, maybe the Wiemar government did not handle the treaty very well. I think we should not have lost as many lands. I as a citizen did not vote for the war so why should I have to fear annexation from my homeland because of that? They could have fought a little bit more. What was the worst that could have happened at that time? We could not have been beaten again and occupation would have been nothing different than our last government. I just miss the lands we lost. That part of not being in the war is unfair.

This depression is just another cycle of the life of economics. If we as Germans stop fighting for a moment than we can work together to build ourselves back up. The world hates us but in ten years they will hate someone else. Right now we can stop needing money and start growing food for each other and trade goods instead of money like we did as humans years ago. Our economy is horrible but it will bring itself back up, right now we have to act together and stop fighting to help each other. It is not our government's fault. None of this is. They have the hardest job in this country and less criticism will help they act with authority and confidence. So stop berating them and start helping them. People of Germany we can grow and get back on top of world with democracy and unity, that is what America has done.

(I used Google translator fyi)

Miller- If only you Understood

As the old folks would put it "think before you speak" and I think that the Weimar Government should have done that. The Weimar Government has shown us many mistakes that could have been prevented only if they would have taken the time to think and critically analyze. As a German citizen I feel as if I have been let down because there is nothing being done to make any situation better for us citizens. I worked as hard as I can to provide for my family and me because I am a single mother. My husband, he was a very dedicated soldier that was killed during the war. The government has shown me little support, all that they are worried about is trying to fix what they should have though about and that is the Treaty of Versailles. This was supposedly the nice way of saying that peace will some how be brought about, but yet and still I see hardship. The peace settlement was to end the war but since we are the LOSERS it will only get harder for us. Signing this settlement meant we had to pay all reparations of the war which was 33 billion dollars and signing a war guilt clause. And furthermore we fought hard to get land but in the end it was useless because it was taken from us. The government didn't even try to regain it back. That land was valuable to us because even though we had to pay the reparations and unfortunately sign the war guilt clause, we still could have looked upon those lands to gives us support. As soon as my government did this I began to become very ashamed of being a German citizen. As all of the things had to be completed the economy would sure enough be in a bigger hole. There is no way that the government could be thinking about us citizens because if they were then they would have revamped what they just have signed, the Treaty of Versailles. In clear words the Weimar Government and the way they handled WWI was terrible, they were only thinking about that day and not the rest of the days of hardship to come. The only thing that the Weimar Government to the citizens to making it harder for us to provide a basic necessity life. The soldiers come home to find that the unemployment rates are ridiculous so the women like me are really struggling to provide for the family. I see little to no support from the government to help the citizens (who actually exist) to give them help.

I think it is time to move on to another government one that will be more cautious of the things that they sign and give up!

Soures-

Belk Notes

Source 1
--
*B*L*M*

The Weinmar government's uselessness

I am a German citizen and these are my rating on the performance of the Weimar government. Out of all of the issues the government dealt with, I will point out the three main issues that I feel disappointed me the most. The three main issues deal with how they dealt with WWI, how they dealt with the land question after WWI, and how they dealt with the post-war economy.
First off I must convey my attitude towards the Weimar government; I feel like they are a failure and don’t represent or govern us to the best of their ability. This brings me o the way they dealt with WWI. Our military entered into the war ready to defend our German country. We gave our all and to have the Weimar government choose to have us resign from it is ridiculous. This makes me view our so called government as cowards. It’s frustrating to know that we were winning the war and our men are risking loosing their life for the Weimar government and Germany. To me they basically let u down. I mean I wouldn’t have given up on my country if I was governing. When they gave up on us because they were afraid of failure, which was the first thing that made me look at them as a failure and cowards. Not only were they cowards, but they also signed some “peace treaty” that said we would: 1.Take blame for the war, 2. Reduce military, 3. Owe 33 billion in war reparation and 4. Give up land.
After WWI, their failures continued to grow in my eyes. The settlement that affected me and the most was when we had to give our land away. This had me heated. All of the land of ours was signed away because of the Weimar government’s coward ness. We entered in the war wanting to gain land and ended up losing the land that we had from the beginning. When we gave our land away it wasn’t just any old land, it was the best of the best. My land that I lived on was taken and my family had to move. The Weimar hasn’t done anything but leave my family and our country in a disgrace.
The way they dealt with post-war economy also showed failure when it came to the industrial and agricultural output and unemployment. Once again, I blame it on the horrible judgment of the Weimar government when they signed the “peace treaty”. The peace treaty said we owed 33 billion in war reparation. Since we owed this much, we had to suffer because our country was now in debt. By us being in debt, there wasn’t enough money to pay workers. So therefore, jobs were decreasing. This caused problems for our military men when they came home to no jobs. This major economic change would make them and families suffer. Like I stated earlier, the peace treaty took away he land in which helped me provide for my family. So not only were our jobs taken away but our land also. All of this happened because of the Weimar government and their poor leadership.

Williams--Weimar Republic is a No-Go

No one is happy about the Treaty of Versailles. First of all, it signifies our loss in WWI. When we were so close to the end of it all, when we might have won, the Weimar Republic pulled us out of the fight. We could have restored honor to our country and won the war had they not signed the Armistice. And now, the Treaty of Versailles brings further damage and humiliation our nation. Our once strong and powerful army has now been reduced to merely 100,000 men. How can I sleep at night knowing my family and I have no protection? And what about the War Guilt Clause?? Germany is not the only country responsible for the war! Not only does this part of the Treaty of Versailles force German citizens to face humiliation we don’t deserve, but we also have to foot the bill. The war has devastated every country involved. How can the Weimar Government and the Allies possibly expect us citizens to come us with $33 billion? I understand that Germany would have been invaded had the treaty not been signed, but there must have been another—easier—way for the Weimar Republic to satisfy the Allies.
The Treaty of Versailles has also taken our land from us. We lost most of our rich agricultural and industrial land to our enemies. Now we are struggling to come up with ways to pay for the war—we no longer have land to grow food to sell, nor land to produce goods to sell. This means jobs and even more money lost for German families. And especially now that our agricultural land is gone, my family struggles to find enough food to survive. What little food we find we cannot afford; inflation is so high these days, since the Weimar Republic printed more money in attempt to solve our problems of war debt and starvation. I feel that giving land back to the countries from which they were taken (like giving Alsace-Lorraine back to France) is the right thing to do. However, if Germany still had its valuable agricultural and industrial land, all of us would have an easier time getting by nowadays and saving money to pay off our war debt.
I don’t like the way the Weimar Republic worked together with the Allies to pay our war debt. The Dawes Plan worked well at first—unemployment decreased and for five years our country was able to work productively to pay off that God-awful debt. But the U.S.’s Great Depression messed everything up. The Americans said they couldn’t make any more loans to us to help us pay off the balance. Then, the Young Plan was put into place. It definitely did not work wonders. Even though the plan reduced our war debt by ¾, unemployment in our country rose again. I always knew we couldn’t trust those Americans! Why would Germany want to work with the enemy, and why would the enemy willingly help us?
Overall, I am not satisfied with the performance of the Weimar Republic. I believe they put their will to prevent further conflict before the will of the German people. They did not act according to our wants and needs. Signing the Armistice and the Treaty of Versailles upset virtually all Germans, as we wanted the war to continue (so we could prove our strength and world-power) and these clearly brought many struggles to German citizens (including loss of valuable land and a $33 billion dollar bill to foot). Then, the Weimar Republic tried to help us out by working with Americans to create the Dawes and Young Plans. The Dawes Plan was okay, but America’s Great Depression caused further problems for us, as they could no longer loan us money. The Young Plan raised unemployment in Germany yet again, and in the end, we were forced to suspend our payments of all war reparations. Their plans clearly did not work to Germany’s benefit in the end. The Weimar Republic thought they knew what was best for Germany’s people, but in reality, they didn’t know the first thing about what we needed or wanted.

Burdette--There's a silver lining to every cloud...

At least the war is over. At least Kaiser Wilhelm is gone. At least there will be no more fighting.
This new government (they call themselves the Weimar government) ended the war just like that. No one was quite prepared. I can't say I mind too much...I'm glad the war is over. I had just gotten so tired of hearing about all the deaths. And though I realize the reality of it is that there will be brothers, fathers, sons, best friends, boyfriends, uncles don't return home, I am just happy that no more people have to die for some cause that no one even remembers at this point. Some would say that these Weimar people should not have gotten us out of the war...something about the fact that we weren't really defeated and should not have given up. I just got so tired of the war though. I'm glad it's over. Although I must say, the Allies did put us in quite a predicament with their little treaty. But I really don't think that was the Weimar government's fault. They just wanted to get us out of this war. The Allies, on the other hand, wanted to lay full responsibility on us; they were merciless, creating a treaty that cost us billions (of money and acres of land). The Allies are to blame for our problems: our unstable economy, our tiny army, our new status as an outcast in the world. Just because the Weimar government wanted to get Germany out of the war does not mean that they should be to blame for our current situation. Look to the Allies if you want to blame someone.
And then there's the economy issue. Again, I blame the Allies. We are dealing with inflation and billions of dollars in war debt. On top of that, due to the high rate of casualties in the war (thanks again to the Weimars for getting us out of that mess ASAP), there's a lack of workers. Some returning soldiers can't even work and unemployment rates are high. Plus, we lost a lot of industrially rich land in that stupid treaty the Allies forced us to sign. Because of this, our industrial production is going to be way down. And then how are we supposed to pay off this debt? It's a vicious cycle! But I have faith in the Weimar government...I have a feeling they are going to make things better. We may not be in a good place right now (and some of my fellow Germans would probably blame our new government), but I don't think this unstable economy was caused by the Treaty of Versailles which we basically had no choice but to sign. If our government hadn't signed that treaty, we would have been occupied by the Allies. And at that point, you could pretty much just say goodbye to our beloved Germany as we know it. The Weimar Republic had their hands tied by a pretty little piece of paper that will go down in history as the Allies' great victory: the Treaty of Versailles.
At least, after all the disaster the Allies have caused in Germany they have tried to come up with plans to help us pay back the debt that they so kindly handed us in the first place (pardon my sarcasm here). With the Dawes Plan and eventually the Young Plan, the Allies are attempting to get us on track with our payments for the war reparations. I'm not so sure that the Weimar government should have agreed to this and as the Great Depression is currently destroying both America and by default, most of the world, things aren't looking so good for us. But again, we were forced into this. The Weimar government was not given much choice. They have done the best they could. The ending is not in their hands anymore. The Allies stole that much from them and from us when they made us not only sign the Treaty of Versailles but also agree to the Dawes and Young Plans.
There was absolutely no alternate choice for the Weimar government. Perhaps they see these decisions as what's best for us. The general unrest in the German people due to our current situation probably mean the Weimar Republic won't be in power much longer. Signing the Treaty of Versailles seems like a sacrifice on their part. It's hitting us hard too but they signed over their chances of holding power when they signed that treaty. Thanks to the Allies for turning the German people against their government who did so much for them. I can't blame the Weimar government--their hands were figuratively tied--although I know many can and will. It seems such a shame that they were put in such a predicament (that we were put in such a predicament) because of the Allies' lack of mercy.

Leonard- they did the best they could

As a German I voted for the Weimar government, only because I wanted my right to vote to remain and I knew with the parties it would lead to dictatorship, just ike in Russia. I believe the Weimar government did the best they could with the situation they were given and the mess they were forced to fix.
At the same time I am mad with the Weimar’s government for choosing to sign the armistice when we were so close to winning the war. (1) We could have pulled out a victory! Our men were so close to the French headquarters they could smell it, but then they were called back. This decision hurt my faith in the Weimar government they were not the government I thought they would be, but they are still better than any of my alternatives.
Unlike my fellow citizens I do not believe that the Weimar Government are the “November Criminals.” Believe they made a decision that was forced upon them by the countries that developed the Treaty of Versailles. If they did not sign the treaty I might be writing this, and at the same time fearing for the safety of my family and friends, that they might die at the hands of another counties soldiers. If any think the government should have accepted only some of the punishment from the treaty to please the majority, then fought the rest of the treaty for a lessened punishment. If I was in charge I would say that if the countries ever want to see the money Germany owed then for the war then there was no way they could take away 40% of our iron production and 16% of our coal production.(1) Doing this would hurt our industry and make it impossible for us to play them back in the near future or at all. I believe that appealing to their financial side would have allowed us to retain the majority of our land because if the believed they would never see their money they would be more willing to negotiate.
Although the Weimar government has made a few mistakes, I still think they have the best interest of the German at heart. If this was not true, they would not hold elections like they did; they would not want to hear what the common person had to say. This sense of input is something that I do not get from the other government parties and is why the Weimar government gained my support and will keep it. With every government there will be up and downs, the Weimar government has dealt with these in the best way they could. They have the best vision for my country German!!

Sources
1- Belk Notes

Weimer Government

Well our great country is completely going down the drain, and we are losing all international respect. I have never been so ashamed to be a German. I think that if we could finally get a competent form of leadership, we could return to the powerful Germany I remember. We finally got Kaiser Wilhelm off the throne. The useless hump of waste promises us the Great War will only last a matter of months, and it lasted four years! The Weimer government then steps in, and takes us out of the war, a war we were winning, a war we dominated for four years. You know, maybe I should be leader of Germany, I would have done many things differently.

First, as I mentioned, the Weimer Government took us out of the war. Our Schleiffen Plan was activated at the commencement of the war, and surprisingly worked. We demolished Belgium (a move I disagree with), and got within 30 miles of Paris (Belk notes). Our "Great Wheel" was spinning with perfection (Belk notes). Wilhelm abdicates and flees like a baby, and the Weimer government, led by Ebert, takes control and takes us out of the war. Why! We were winning, we were going to win, why not finish what was forced upon us? Now the millons of soldiers that fought for this country and died, died for absolutely nothing! Their efforts are wasted, because look what was forced upon us for surrendering: The Treaty of Versailles. Personally, I would have continued the war effort, taken Paris, and led Germany to become the most powerful country in Europe. Sure they wanted to get us out of the war that was killing Germans left and right, starving citizens, and putting the country in economical turmoil. But we lasted for four years, let's win what we started and make countries pay us, rather than us pay inferior countires, like the US. I do not hate the Weimer government, but their move to take us out of the war and destroy all efforts taken to win, is eradicating my patriotism, and faith in the future welfare of Germany. In this dreadful Treaty of Versailles, we were forced to give away land. We had to give lovely Alsace Lorraine back to the wimpy French, and West Prussia to Poland (Treaty of Versailles). We had to give all of this abundant land to neighboring counties, enemy countries. These countries were not our allies, we were providing enemies with resources, making them stronger and us even more weaker. We were giving land to countries all around the border, and we needed this land for farming and food. We needed some food! Let me explain the Weimer government's biggest problem. Our Post-War economy was bad. Unemployment was on the rise from all the casualties, and output was low. Of course, the demand for food was high. But we lost fertile land for farming in the Treaty of Versailles, and men workers from the war. After being forced to pay reparations, our currency was low and of very decreased value. Also because of the War Guilt Clause, countries were reluctant to trade with us because we had to admit we began the war (which we didn't, Russia did!) We had no trading partners, almost no money, and suffering from huge inflation. The Weimer government should not have accepted the Treaty of Versailles, and avoided this economic turmoil.

Ticked off!!!

I am so ashamed to be a citizen of Germany right about now that it’s pitiful. These November Criminals well excuse me, Weimar Government as those losers liked to be officially called are getting on my last nerves. They can’t even recognize when we’re winning a war, how in the world are they gonna change Germany to a democracy. Don’t you know those idiots signed an armistice when we were on the verge of coming back in the war? I mean, so what, we got pushed back a few miles, all we had to do is regroup and we were ready to bust some caps in those allied pansies and they surrendered. What a bunch of pu…ugh!!! I can’t believe my big brother died in a war we didn’t even have a chance to win. Those morons have ruined our country’s pride. Now we will go down in history as the country that started a war and were to chicken to finish it. But that not all those little turds did to screw things up. They accepted the Treaty of Versayes or Versailles or something those douchbag Allies wrote to make our life hell. Now thanks to those Weimar freaks, we are forced to pay this large sum of money because apparently, its our fault for starting that blasted war. And don’t you know those fools gave away our best good producing land. I mean, if we’re going to pay the money, don’t you think we’re going to need to produce some things in order to make money so we can pay it back. Duh!! But anyway, those Weimar idiots got the grand idea that “hey, we can pay back this money by printing off more of our money”. Nope, wrong. Now our money is useless, well not completely its great paper for origami sculptures. And don’t even get me on the cost of groceries. Holy crap, when I got to the grocery store I have to take a daggum book bag of money just to buy a gallon of milk, a carton of eggs, and a candy bar. I can’t even go to Friedrich’s Chicken Shack without taking a wheelbarrow full of money in order to pay for our food. It’s a shame. These fools are really starting to aggravate the crap out of me. Somebody better step up and cap these fools soon or I might do it, gosh.

Muse- What up with Germany?

Being a German citizen I have always taken pride in my country. I am a true supporter and I was so inspired that I wanted to help my country, so I joined the military. After having joined and gone through some of the most antagonizing years of war, having been released from the military after WW1 was one of the worst moments in my life. Thanks to my so called "amazing" government wimping out of the war I was forced to return home and be a regular citizen. All because our government signed the Treaty of Versailles. Why o why the Treaty of Versailles?!? For twenty I lived peacefully in my home with my wife and son but now I cant even say I'm proud to be a German because the land where I lived was taken for the TOV. Now I belong to a completely different country and have to obide by new rules. Had the Weimar Government let Germany remain in the war I would have still had a job and been a true inhabitant of Germany. I remember being on the front line, killing frenchies left and right...we were actually pushing forward and then we hear that the Weimar stepped in and POOF...we're done. And on top of that our country, although we weren't thriving economically, had just gained some significant amounts of land that could have helped supply food for my wife and son back home...we gained all kinds of land from Russia since they dropped out of the war through the Treaty of Brestlitovsk. On top of my family being hungry, the rest of the country is in desperate need as well and that land could have helped us create more agricultural plots for food but now ALL that land...is gone. Why did the Weimar have to step in? I'm about fed up with them honestly, I could take being home instead of fighting and I held my tongue when we lost some of our allies because for some of the war we hardly consulted them but now these 'criminals' are choosing to sign something called a war gulit clause. WHAT IS THAT?!? We're paying millions upon millions ($33) because we "started the war." I'm almost glad that I'm not a part of Germany anymore because these crazy democratic freaks are bringing Germany to its knees. My best friend from the war, Audric, wrote me a letter telling me how things were back home, he said he couldnt get a job because the Weimar thought it would be smart to shut down all the factories and industries. How is that gonna help? They already increased their money production, which Audric said he now has enough paper to fuel his fire in his home. Watching Germany fall from inside and at a distance has been one of the most unbearable sights to see. My life has been full of economical turmoil and emoitional complication. These criminals took my job, gave away my land, left my best friend to fend for himself, and took one of the most sacred things I used to treasure...my pride in my country. Good ridens, I hope someone or something comes in and pushes them out of their place of power, which they didnt even deserve in the first place. I hope they get beaten so bad that they wish they had never come to power in the first place.

Zebedis: Such a Disappointment

The German people have different views on how they would rate the Weimar Republic when it comes to certain issues such as: World War I, the land that was lost, and the Post-War Economy (1918-1933). But, I have been a German citizen for all of my life, 65 years now and when it comes to the way I feel about the Weimar Republic all I have to say is, “Deutschland wird bald verloren!” or as the Americans would say, “Germany will soon be lost!”

In my opinion, the Weimar Republic has made many poor decisions when it comes to running the great country of Germany. First, I will give you my thoughts on their decision to get out of World War I. To put this into simple terms, Germany was winning! We were not losing the war and for some reason only two days after the Weimar Republic seized power they signed an armistice that officially ended the war for Germany. Four years of fighting and dying and the Weimar Republic decided that enough was enough. We are the great land of Germany!! If we are going to lose a war let it be because our enemy has defeated us. We were fighting for our country and for the soldiers who lost their lives and for our families so they can have a better future. We were fighting in the name of Germany and the Weimar Republic stripped our nationalistic pride away from us. We are now viewed as cowards who do nothing but run and surrender in the eyes of defeat. Not only did the Weimar Republic end the war, they signed the Treaty of Versailles which had outstanding restrictions on Germany: take full responsibility, pay for everything, reduce the military and lose land. These “November Criminals” said that they had no choice because Germany would be invaded if they didn’t sign the treaty. Well I say let them come! We were already fighting anyways and at least if we are defeated then we will be defeated with our pride still intact. We would be defeated defending Germany, not because some cowards in the government signed a piece of paper.

Enough said on the war, let me move on to the German Land. Germany lost all of her pre-war colonies and almost 13 percent of her territory following WWI and the Treaty of Versailles. Not only did she lose land, but we lost our people as well. Almost 12 percent of the population was divided into new independent countries. This is outrageous! How can Germany be considered a world power without a large empire? How can Germany be considered a European power when she can’t even keep her people together? The Weimar Republic signed the Treaty of Versailles under these conditions. The Weimar government does not care about a German unity but rather cares about what makes everyone else in the world happy. As a German citizen I say that we should not be trying to please the world but the world should be trying to please us. We need a new government to retrieve the lost land and people and once again reunite Germany as a dominating world power.

Finally, I will discuss my views on the way the Weimar Republic is controlling Germany’s Post-War Economy. The German economy is dreadful! After those “November Criminals” signed that awful treaty, Germany was now responsible for the entire war debt, over 33 billion US dollars! With unemployment already on the rise because of the dreadful economy, the industrial production was also decreasing because all of the strong, able bodied men were either wounded or killed in the war. Also, when the Weimar Republic noticed that the economy was decreasing, they decided to print more money. This is just another example of them running my country into the ground. The value of our currency plummeted so drastically that about a week ago I went to the store to buy bread and milk and it was going to cost me 500,000,000 in my currency. Not a single German citizen has that much money and people are beginning to starve. The inflation has ruined the value of our currency to the point where we are burning it in our homes just to stay warm. Our money is useless everywhere and without money, there cannot be a successful economy or a successful country.

Well those are my opinions on the Weimar Government. They need to be overthrown very soon for the sake of Germany. I will support any opposition group that arises because I am ready for something different. I do not care if its communism or a dictatorship, anything but these dreadful politicians we have in power now.

Elmore- Die Zeitung des Bauern (The Peasant's Newspaper)

Heute: am 2. November

Munich, Deutschland



This must stop. Each day, as we continue, our lives get worse and worse. What is the meaning of this? I don't know, mein Gott, things never seem to get better. Never do I question mein government, but the situation doesn't seem to be getting better.



Today, I was walking in die Beer Hall, und I saw ein mann standing in the middle of the room. He had ein kleine mustache, und he was talking about how die Deutsche people should rebel. It was something I heard und could not walk away. After all das time, ein mann was saying what we thought. Now that I live en ein world where I am told what to do by die governnment, without being able to think for meinselffe. First, I hear tales about how people try to protest, but then they hold ein strika und we all not have food.

I have not been thinking of die things I kan do, because I am one of die people that has not lost mein work after die war. Because my left arm does not work, I was not taken into die army. I hope that someone kan save mein other workers though, mein frienden went into die war, und when most of die army was sent home, he lost that job, and when he came home, he did not have ein job en die factory. I see die things happening, und I want to help, but I know that die governnment will hurt me if I do. No one likes die piece of paper that was made to rule our lives drei Januar ago, but we know there is ein risk in supporting a man.

Either way, something needs to change, und I don't really care how extreme die persons are. Just as long as I get food, wasser, und a place to sleep. No one really likes die Friedcoprs or Ebert.

The man sprechen today was taken off by die police, after he said we needed to rise up und not pay die money fur die war. I don't think so too, but I don't want to go to jail. Dis, "Adolf Hitler" is ein nice mann. I hope we read about this mann some day und say, "He was ein gute man all of his life."


Weil ich erschrocken bin, nicht schließe ich meinen Namen ein.

(This man was found by the government, and taken as a prisoner at Landsburg, the same prison where the man he saw speaking was taken. He has a sentence of 4 years for treason)

Corbett- Not so Much

So, lately things haven't been going well in Germany. The stupid Wiemar government gave up on the war, which we weren't even losing and now we have to bend over backwards to abide by the terms of that treaty! Everyone knows that we were not the only people to start the war. I mean seriously. Britain was building an army to practiacally take over the world and we are a threat! There were numerous countries in this war and we get stuck with the blame because the Wiemar government decided to tap out. I understand there was the whole, "if you don't surrender we'll invade you" but forget the allies! They are the ones who were losing and looking all pathetic. But those Wiemar people bust up into office and within two days ruin the German reputation and pride, most definitely not a smart first move. I know this must have been hard but the we would have supported the government if they had decided to stay in it. Maybe the Wiemar shouldn't have tried to take office in the middle of a war. I know it may be harsh but, things have quickly gone down hill for every one of the citizens. I get it that there are plenty of problems to keep the Wiemar government busy but if they could just address a couple of the large problems like our suddenly depressed economy. I'm sure you weren't meaning to make it impossible for the citizens to buy basic essentials like food but the printing loads of extra money to pay the war reparations, a rookie mistake. Now our money is worth noting and we need a dump truck full of money to pay for groceries, which of course none of us have. We all appreciate that the Wiemar government does rule with tyranny but being completely poor and starving isn't much better. And it's not just that the money is worthless but I've even lost my job now. Where did all the jobs go? The soldiers coming home who are wounded aren't taking those jobs and even if they weren't injured they wouldn't be able to find work. I guess since no one can afford anything, factories cannot afford the means of production or to keep us workers. I hate to say this but I'm ready for one of those other crazy groups to give this government thing a try. It's not like we have anything to lose. That Hitler guy obviously wants to rule, since he was trying to start a putsch from a beer hall. Or even one of those communist groups. They are all about the working people and right now they are the ones who cater to my needs. I don't want to say that the Wiemar did a horrible job because I image that i couldn't have done much better but maybe its time to hand the reins over. Because overall my feeling about Wiemar's rule was, not so much. But good try anyways.